Eternal Bonds
by Kelsid
Summary: Once upon a time, the Marauders made a vow. A vow that if they ever separated, they would be sent back to their 7th year, unable to return to their correct times until their friendships were renewed. It's 1993 and the Marauder's vow has come true...
1. Chapter 1

Eternal Bonds

By Kelsid

_September 21, 1977_

One moment, the Marauders were sitting there, in front of the Transfiguration classroom, listening to the lesson. The next, they were gone. And in their place were four men. Four older men, one looking about twenty with dark, untidy hair and glasses, one with dirty matted hair and a gaunt face, one's hair graying and face lined, wearing threadbare robes, while the last was balding with watery blue eyes. But, in fact, they resembled the Marauders. Too much to be considered coincidence.

The men stared at the classroom, eyes wide in astonishment. The class did the same. The gaunt man whispered faintly, "This isn't… possible…"

"Who are you?" the teacher asked sharply, taking off her glasses as if to study the strangers closer.

"We were the Marauders," breathed one, unable to take his eyes off the group. "We were the Marauders… a long time ago."

"Twenty years ago," another echoed weakly.

"But… you're here," stated the teacher, staring each straight in the eye.

The gaunt one faced her, eyes deadened. "So we are," he replied. "So we are."

_October 31, 1981_

The night was silent. Hardly a breeze whispered past the house, and noise was absent. No cars. No laughter. No nothing. It was indescribably quiet, and that's what scared James Potter.

"Brooding?" his wife asked, tracing his jaw line lovingly, her eyes soft and tender. Their son lay in her arms, staring at the two intently. James sighed, putting his arm around her shoulders.

"No, just thinking." About that traitor, Remus? About how Voldemort was after them? About how they were going to live a normal life?

His wife understood, leaning into him gently. "I know, James. I think about it too… Voldemort, Remus… if we survive this…"

"I don't understand, Lily. He was one of us… our friend. No, we were closer than friends, Lily, we were brothers. We all thought he'd never cave into that side of him… the side that rarely showed itself. But he did.

"I just keep remembering good Remus, who convinced us to stay inside the dorm or to not hex Snape from here to oblivion… I just can't believe he's gone." James lifted his face, hoping he wasn't betraying what was raging inside him. His friend wanted to kill him, his family. And he hated him for that.

Lily sighed, bringing Harry closer to her. "I know, James. I loved him too."

Time went by silently, swiftly. Precious time, time that would never be replaced. And through it all was silence.

James had been so unaccustomed to noise, when the door creaked, he heard. He knew. Only what he knew wasn't true. If he had had a bit longer to think on it, he may have realized Peter betrayed them.

But he didn't. He could only think, i _Remus. Somehow, he found out. Somehow, he told Voldemort._ /i "Lily." His voice sounded hard, commanding. "Take Harry. Go. Now."

She let out a small breath of air, but knew what she had to do. Harry in her arms, she went upstairs. i _I love you,_ /i thought James, watching her leave. i _So much._ /i

Voldemort was there, laughing. Every laugh rang of Remus… God, he hated him. Not for betraying James himself, exactly, but for betraying Lily and Harry.

And when he saw the green light that ended his life, he never thought about the traitor. He only saw Lily's eyes, Harry's eyes. He saw Sirius laughing in that bark-like way, and Peter distracting someone for their prank. Never did he think of Remus. He didn't deserve it. No traitor like that deserved a thing.

And James died.

_October 30th, 1993_

Was he really that weak? His knees buckled from under him, and he lay down, relieved. Maybe he was.

Sirius gazed out in front of him. Hogwarts castle stood, imposing as ever, before him, with the lake glittering in the soft rays of moonlight. He'd forgotten what it looked like. Groaning, he propped himself against a tree, ignoring the roughness of the bark rubbing his back.

Yes, he'd be arriving at Hogwarts soon. And he would kill the rat. An eerie sort of smile drifted to his face as he closed his eyes, relishing the terrorized look on Peter's face when he caught him. It would be a pleasure to cause him pain.

Sirius was no stranger to pain. He'd been feeling it for the past twelve years, guilt and suffering at James and Lily's deaths. Every night, he had dreams of them, at their laughter and good times. When Sirius had turned over Harry's 1st birthday cake… when he and James went house-hunting… Good memories.

But every since James died, they'd been horrible. Countless days in Azkaban, all the same, with moans from all around him… He shook his head slightly. It was Peter's fault. After he killed the traitor, everything would be better. After the rat was gone…

He'd betrayed James and Lily for saving his own stinking skin. Repulsion rippled through Sirius, who shivered slightly. Sometimes, he was surprised at his own hate. Right now, he didn't care if anyone thought he was a murderer when he was done with Peter, even Remus or Harry. He wanted to kill. Everything would be all right.

Smiling again, Sirius drifted off to sleep. Tomorrow, the rat would be dead. And everything would be all right.

_October 30th, 1993_

Sometimes, he couldn't get used to it. Looking up, he expected to see James, Sirius and Peter smiling at him, waving. No, they were dead. He must remember that.

Remus sighed, putting away the papers he still had to grade. He needed some time to think, to get outside the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. Stepping outside lightly, he walked down the dimly lit corridors, ignoring some looks from nearby portraits.

Everywhere he went, memories followed. There, right there, was where they pulled their first prank with the Invisibility Cloak. That's where Sirius received his 100th detention… and there… Remus closed his eyes. i _Stop thinking about them,_ /i he chided. i _They are the past._ /i Well, except for one. The one that posed a threat more menacing than he would have expected. Sirius.

He escaped. How, Remus could only guess. But he managed it. And he was coming after Harry.

Sirius. The name brought up the image of a grinning, youthful boy, not the gaunt man in the photographs. He imagined him, laughing maniacally in Azkaban, as if enjoying a good joke. He'd never felt remorse at James and Lily's demise. He'd never felt the pain Remus had to go through, every single day. James died thinking it was Remus. Lily died thinking it was Remus. That fact wouldn't stop tearing him apart.

At first, he had hated him. Now it had simply faded into pondering- Why? Why had he done it? - and pity. He had been a good man, Sirius. Loyal, strong, and brave… where did it go wrong?

He stopped to lean against the wall briefly. He probably shouldn't have gone on this walk- Remus should be, as he had heard Madam Pomfrey recount numerous times, "resting." The full moon had only been a few days before, and he was tired. A small thought nagged at him- "When you were at Hogwarts, you never got that tired."

Could nothing ever stop leading to the past? Once again, memories rose from even the tiniest corners, from the most inconspicuous hallway. This was where James first kissed Lily. This was where Peter tripped on Sandra King… This was where Sirius suddenly collapsed on the ground, hoping to gather attention...

It was back to Sirius again, wasn't it? Everything seemed to go in circles. One moment, Remus could be thinking about an entirely different subject, but then suddenly would change into Sirius.

But at least something Remus had discovered dulled the pain- He no longer felt anything for Sirius. He didn't care if he drowned. He didn't care if he was shot multiple times. They no longer had any connection. Oh, yes, he still remembered the times they had… but that Sirius was gone. The person that blinked from the posters plastered everywhere was a stranger.

So, he supposed the Sirius he knew was dead. Remus felt a bit of remorse at that, but he passed on. James was dead. Lily was dead. Peter was dead.

And, he reminded himself, so was Sirius.

_October 30th, 1993_

The sudden jostle from the surface Peter slept on awoke him. Startled, the rat perked its small ears up. i _Just Ron snoring,_ /i he told himself. /i _That's it._ /i

But he couldn't go back to sleep; a nagging thought hung to the back of his mind. Looking over the fabric of Ron's shirt, the rat flinched. He imagined James in the shadows, coming to get him. To kill him.

Shuddering, he closed his eyes. James came too often for his liking, to whisper those words over and over again: "You killed me, Peter. You killed me."

"I didn't mean to," he'd protest weakly, flinging himself down. "He forced me, He-Who-Can-Not-Be-Named made me…"

Then James would grasp Peter's jaw tightly, making him wheeze. "They would have died for me, Peter. Remus and Sirius would have."

"But I'm not them!" he cried, sinking to his knees. "They've always been so good… Sirius was so strong and loyal, Remus kind and generous… I'm not like them!"

James's eyes would harden, teeth clenched. "You were never one of us."

Peter would wake from his dream at that time, chattering slightly. And every time, he thought the same thing. i _I hate them._ /i

He hated them, because they were better than he. He hated them, because they still put up with him anyways. He hated them because he was weak himself.

Well, he tried to convince himself, 1981, Halloween, proved he wasn't weak. He betrayed the Potters! He killed James and Lily! He put Sirius in jail! He caused Remus endless sorrow… was that weak? Of course not. But he knew it was.

He was weak.

And he hated them all.

The loyal James, always with his friends. The brave Sirius, sticking up for those he cared. Kind Remus, giving advice or help when needed. And he caused all those men eternal pain.

He hated them because of that.

He hated them all.

_Flashback_

_The four drops of blood lay in front of them, reminding the boys forcibly of what they'd done. One smiled shakily; trying to reassure everyone it would be fine._

_"So… so now… if we're… separated when we've grown… we… we come back here?" squeaked a small boy, blonde hair shaking slightly._

_"Yes," replied the black haired one, wiping off his glasses. He pretended to not to notice his hands were faintly trembling. _

_"We've done something really serious," said a light brown haired one, looking at the four drops. _

_"It's for the better," butted in one, throwing back his dark hair in a manner of arrogance. "We'll be friends forever, now. Whatever happens, we'll be friends."_

_"We always will be," the spectacled one said forcibly. _

_"Anything can happen in the future," said the brown haired boy wisely, nodding as if to verify this. "Anything at all."_

_They sighed. "If we don't… patch it up … we might not come back," whispered the blonde haired one faintly._

_"It's a chance worth taking," said the dark haired one sharply. "It's all of us, or none. An eternal bond, Wormtail- an eternal bond." _


	2. Chapter 2

James remembered the green light, and the memories… and he knew, for a moment, he'd been dead. But he was here, in McGonagall's classroom. Was he dreaming? Hallucinating? From the blank faces on the students before him, he had a feeling he wasn't.

His flattened his hands against the desk. Yes, he was real. The wood was solid- as solid as anything. For some reason, the room stayed deathly quiet. James felt himself everyone's eyes on him as he closed his briefly; trying to rid himself of the strange sensation. For some reason, he couldn't look into their wide eyes- anywhere but there. His gaze slid to his right when he froze in place. There he was. The traitor. He looked older, without doubt, and looked tired and ill. But it was still Remus. James didn't even question why his friend looked older. He just recognized the man that destroyed his family. He felt his fingers curl inside his palm, clenching into fists. He killed Lily. He killed Harry… he killed me…Next thing James knew, he was on top of him with a roar of rage.

Remus hadn't seen it coming; James could tell by the startled look on his face. When the man's body hit the floor, it went down with a satisfying thud.

He ignored the look on the students' faces when he did this; this was between Remus and himself. He didn't know why he was here, why Remus was here, and at this time, but he didn't care. James wanted revenge for his wife. For his son. For himself.

"You killed them," he hissed, hand grabbing Remus's throat. "You killed Lily and Harry for no reason! You were our friend!" He disregarded the hurt in his friend's eyes before they hardened. They showed nothing. Now, Remus was truly a monster- he had no feelings.

"You aren't even human, are you? You can't even show emotion." He gripped his grasp tighter, as if to make a point. "You were ready to kill a child. A _year old baby._ And I was friends with you… I cared for you, Remus. They were innocent- innocent people that showed you nothing but compassion! They were my family, Remus! We loved you-" James stopped mid-sentence when a hand pressed firmly on his shoulder.

Sirius was there… only older. His face was thinned out, almost hollowed, and his hair was unkempt and dirty. He hardly looked like the man James knew. _What happened?_ He wanted to ask, desperately. _God, what happened to all of you? _When he spoke, his voice rasped from lack of use, but it was still Sirius's voice. "It wasn't Remus," he said, staring straight into James's face. "He wasn't the traitor. Oh, James…" There was a note of desperateness in his voice, an apologetic tone.

"You were." Remus's voice was even, as it always had been. Never breaking, never faltering. Remus, the calm one. "You were the traitor." His eyes never left Sirius's. In the gaze, Sirius could perceive soft sorrow, and at the same time, a question. _Why did you do it?_

_I thought you were our friend._

_I trusted you._

_We were the strongest bond of brothers._

_You seemed so loyal._

_Why did this happen?_

_Why?_

He wanted to croak back, "I didn't, I didn't," but he knew Remus wouldn't believe him. No one believed him. How many times had he muttered it in his sleep, then having to live the taunts of the prisoner next cell down?

"Yeh, right ye didn't do nothing," sneered the man, voice rough and coarse. Then a brittle laugh followed, always. "Yer nothing but a coward. Face yer sentence! Yer already here, aren't ye? Not like nothing's gonna change. Ye did it. Ye know ye did."

He tried to ignore it. He laid on the stone floor, watching water fall into rough crevices in the rock. But the man's voice echoed with each drop falling- 'Ye did it. Ye know ye did.'

Finally the man left after a year or so- pausing by his cell door with Dementors flanking his sides. He was just as Sirius pictured him- long, mangled hair, thick beard and yellow teeth. The only thing that surprised him was the cut of his face, angular, yet strong. It didn't belong on such a man.

"Well, I is getting out now," said the man, showing a hideous grin. "Ye is not so lucky. I'll look ye up, Black. We'd be good partners."

Sirius looked out the bars of his prison cell, outside. The air was cool, the night dark and soft. Ignore him; ignore the drunkard, thought Sirius. To his pleasant surprise, he could see the round moon, glowing fluorescently. The only thing that ever showed he still lived on earth.

"Looking at the moon?" he queried, watching Sirius intently. Sirius did not answer. "It's lovely, ain't it? O' course, not to some people," he laughed.

Sirius's head shot up. He had been thinking of Remus, staring at the almost full moon. The man seemed to have read his mind.

"Yer probably surprised to see a person like me think of those things," he said, leaning against the bars. His wrinkled hand curled around an iron bar, relishing the ice cold that stung his skin. "Well, I have a great-nephew with a werewolf problem. Nice lad, but won't make it to society. People like that never do. They're beasts."

The man paused for a moment, thinking. Sirius listened intently, repulsion growing inside of him for the man outside his prison.

"Yep, he's a nice lad," he finished, fingers slowly loosening from the steel. "But a monster anyway. Hate 'im.

"It's been nice chatting with ye, Black. One last word of advice from old Reg, though- Don't keep denying ye did it. We all know ye did. It'll just make things harder."

And for once, Sirius broke. He couldn't take it anymore. "Shut up," he hissed. "I didn't do it."

Reg smirked. "No use denyin' it, lad. Ye killed masses of people, for the Dark Lord. The proof's all there. Ye's a liar as well as a murderer, and ye don't want to add that to the list."

"I didn't!" Sirius jumped to his feet, standing at the bars. "I would never kill Lily or James! It wasn't me! God, would you listen! It wasn't me!" Looking back at the memory, Sirius couldn't believe he had once been so sensitive… but then again, he had only been 20 or so. Too young.

But Reg was already leaving, brittle laugh chortling. "Sure ye didn't, lad," he said, "Sure ye didn't."

"I didn't!" screamed Sirius, letting all feelings loose. Not exactly anger at Reg, but at the newspapers, at Peter, at everyone. "I didn't!"

Sirius ignored the Minister of Magic as he proclaimed Reginald Lupin free. He yelled. He shouted. And for once, Sirius was the madman the papers said him to be.

It was late, when Sirius finally stopped, exhausted. He sunk to the wet, cold ground, letting everything else slip away. It was as if when Reg Lupin had condemned Sirius, Remus had done it himself. That's where had recognized the strong, angular face- Remus.

"Mr. Black?" the voice came out of mist, untying him from his memories. "Mr. Black…"

He remembered where he was now; in the classroom. The classroom of McGonagall's…

This was surreal.

"Jesus Christ," he breathed, looking in at everyone he had known so long ago. There was Eric… Eric Cleveland? Sirius tried to remember his last name as he looked across the room. And there was Lynda Chapman, one of Lily's friends, and…

Lily.

Did this mean she was alive? Still here, at Hogwarts?

The thought hit Sirius like he was slugged in the stomach. He looked around at James, trying to see if he had had the same thought, who was standing silently, jaw set. Remus looked extremely ill, whether at somehow being transported into the past, or just the full moon, and Peter was backing up to the corner. The traitor… the miserable little… He had tricked them all. He killed everyone in cold blood, and didn't even…

Before he could stop himself, he had launched himself at Peter, getting a few screams from female students in the otherwise silent room. Peter felt helpless at his hands, like a worm pathetically squirming underneath sturdy foot.

"No," the man begged, face winced in horrid anticipation. "P… pl… please don't… I didn't… I didn't…"

"Stop!"

For a moment, everyone froze. The room was still deathly quiet, Professor McGonagall in the middle of it all, breathing heavily, face white.

Finally, after taking a few calming breaths, McGonagall said, "I don't know what has happened, or why you are all here. But we're going to have to correct this- or at least find the perpetrating cause.

"I'm as mystified as the rest, and, personally, do not know what is happening. But I ask that all of you… whoever you are… to follow me to Professor Dumbledore's office."

For a moment, Sirius considered disobeying. But as he looked at Remus, so tired and ill, at James, who was looking so miserably confused and Peter, cowering on the floor, he realized that he had to be the strong one. The one who would stand up, like James had been before. James knows too little. Peter is too cowardly. Remus is too quiet. Yes, it was up to Sirius.

Before he could open his mouth to reply, Remus had already stepped forward and quietly exited. Professor McGonagall, looking serious and drawn, followed.

Giving a hard look at Sirius, James left too, leaving Peter lying on the ground. But he soon too scrambled up and fled, Sirius left to be alone.

For a moment, Sirius stood shocked. Remus wasn't supposed to do that… Remus would never have done that. Not the Remus he knew, anyway.

Everyone in the room was staring at him with wide eyes. No one dared say word. For some reason, this irked Sirius more than anything else. "What are you looking at?" he rasped.

A few students jumped at the sound, but then relaxed noticeably. Finally, a small voice came from Lynda Chapman, pale blue eyes nervous looking. "Are you really Sirius Black?" she asked.

For a moment, he really considered answering. But, thinking on it longer, what was the point?

He walked out of the room, leaving the children in awed silence.

"I'm betting it was an enchantment, or something like."

"Perhaps the heat it just affecting them?"

"Nah, they've been near impossible the late. Try cutting them, and they grow right back. Ter tell you the truth, I'm gettin' real angry."

"I will look into the subject myself, Hagrid. Are you positive the hedges are charmed?"

"Yup, wouldn't a come here if I didn't think so."

Professor Dumbledore was about to answer, when a sharp rap at the door cut him off. The gamekeeper, Hagrid, turned his shaggy head towards the door, large hands clutching the arms of the chair.

Another sharp knock punctured the silence, barely waiting between raps. Hagrid, glancing towards the door, gave a thought to who it could be. He gave a quizzical look at Dumbledore, who was staring at the door raptly. "Yes?" he said.

Minerva McGonagall entered the room, mouth tight. Four men trailed behind her, men that Dumbledore had never seen before.

"Professor," McGonagall said, hands tightly knitted before her, "We may have a slight problem on our hands."


	3. Chapter 3

The moment Sirius entered Professor Dumbledore's room, his mind was cleared. For the past fifteen minutes, he had been in a daze, reliving memories that had occurred over thirteen years ago. His mind was wonderfully sharp, like walking in from a hot, humid area into a marvelously cold, crisp morning. If that were possible.

Seeing Dumbledore younger seemed to have no effect on him. He was here, and he wasn't surprised. It was almost as if he were an outsider looking onto the scene. He glanced around and saw James. Immediately, thoughts began to swirl up again. Damn. Sirius thought this was over.

When he snuck a glance at Remus, he felt penetrating sorrow. He wanted to apologize, apologize with all his heart. He wanted the words to pour out of his mouth, to eloquently express his guilt, his wrenching desire for forgiveness, but he knew if he tried, all that would come out would be abrupt and short. Basic words that would never convey his feelings.

He turned and saw Peter. Peter the rat. A fresh anger boiled inside of him. The last few minutes had just been a dream… and now was real. His hands twitched as he yearned for the rat to cry, to beg. Sirius felt a bit of disgust for himself twinge through his mind, but he pushed it away. This rat deserved to die.

Sirius had no hesitation as he reached out towards Peter. He did not know what he was going to do, but he had to do something. Anything. The strangeness of being sent back in time had given Peter a few minutes more to live. Those minutes were up. He was going to kill him, right here, right now. McGonagall had saved him in her classroom, but now-

"Please, if you would all sit," Dumbledore said, motioning to chairs across from his desk. _Dumbledore knew,_ Sirius thought. _He knew I was going to do something. He saved you, Peter…but next time…_

"I may ask why you four gentlemen are here, but I'm not sure if you know yourselves. Apparently, you are not ordinary- from what Minerva has spoken of about 'problems,'- so I would like to know who you are, if it not so much of a bother."

James, unusually pale, turned to look at Sirius. The glance was for help, for confirmation, for anything, but Sirius could not look him in the eye. _Why am I the one he goes to for help, why me, I was the one who killed him, I let Peter become his Secret Keeper, I should have known…_

"Well," James began, throat feeling like sandpaper. "I… don't quite know how to…"

"Quite all right," Dumbledore commented cheerily, but Sirius could see a certain amount of seriousness in his eyes. He was clearly trying to make them feel comfortable, but he also wanted to know what was going on.

James looked even whiter still, hands trembling. His hazel eyes seemed clouded, almost troubled. Last time Sirius had seen him like this was when they had discovered that Marlene McKinnon and her family were dead.

James licked his lips, and began to tell his tale, but a stronger voice had already answered. "We are the Marauders."

Sirius looked around in surprise. Remus was looking ahead, right into Dumbledore's eyes as he answered his question. He appeared so solid, so strong, that Sirius was taken slightly aback.

The headmaster said nothing at first. "That's curious," he said finally, face unreadable. "Very curious…"

Sirius watched as he paced around his desk, blue eyes fierce in concentration. Everyone's eyes were on him. Dumbledore seemed to take little notice of this as he continued on, brow slightly furrowed.

When his bowed head straightened back up, he appeared completely calm, and face cleared of anxiety. "Peter Pettigrew," he said, giving a penetrating glance at Peter and a warm smile. Peter nodded quickly.

"James Potter." James gave a quick flash of a smile, face still white.

"Remus Lupin-" Here Remus gave a curt nod.

"And… Sirius Black," said Dumbledore, turning to Sirius. It was as if Dumbledore could read his mind. The blue eyes penetrated his soul, and Sirius had the feeling that Dumbledore knew what he had done. Everything that had happened in the past decade, he knew.

"And… why are you all here?" Dumbledore asked. Sirius knew it was rhetorical, but he tried to answer best he could.

"I… I don't know… I was outside of Hogwarts when it happened… a light…"

Sirius couldn't ignore Remus's head snapping towards him. "You were outside of Hogwarts?" he breathed, dark brown eyes set on Sirius's own. He could do nothing but nod an affirmative.

"I was at my home," James declared, color coming back to his face. His voice had an air of aggression, turning his cheeks a bit red. "I was at home with my wife… and… and… my son. Voldemort… he came in… we'd been betrayed… and he killed…"

The air in the room had suddenly become tenser. Everyone hung onto James's words; the emotion in them had gripping effect.

"And he killed… me."

The last word came out questioning, as if even James himself doubted it. His skin was back to pale, even a bit clammy.

Dumbledore spoke softly. "James… I think we're going to have to start from the beginning."

"A very good place to start," Peter squeaked.

The look of daggers everyone shot him wasn't surprising.

-

"Lily!"

The red haired girl spun around to see her friend, Lynda Chapman, bounding up behind her. A bright, excited light was shining in her blue eyes as she grabbed Lily's arm.

"Lily, you won't believe…"

Lily looked towards Lynda, but her eyes travelled past. She was obviously preoccupied in some way or another.

"You'll never guess," Lynda started again breathlessly, but Lily wasn't paying attention. Her eyes darted past, scanning for someone else in the crowd. "Who are you looking for?"

She gave a sigh. "Remus. He was supposed to meet me here about five minutes ago, to give me back my Herbology book. I don't know how I'm going to get along without it, considering Herbology is next…"

Lynda's eyes gleamed. "That's exactly what I had to tell you about."

"What?"

Feeling extremely important, Lynda ushered Lily towards a quieter corner in the hallway. This had often happened to Lily, as her friend was always in the mood for gossip. Yet she bore it bravely, knowing that it was important to Lynda in some way or another. This was going to be one of those times.

"I was in McGonagall's classroom, and you know how they're all in my same class? Well, except for Sirius, he got called in because McGonagall had discovered some prank they all pulled… she started yelling, oh, she was mad! You should have seen the look on Peter's face; he was almost ready to start crying."

Lily wasn't sure what was so significant about this, but was ready to falsely revel in the importance of it all, when Lynda whispered something that made her stop. "And then… they all _disappeared._"

For the second time that day, Lily cried, "What?" Lynda was a good friend to her, no doubt about it. Whenever something had gone wrong and needed talking about, Lynda was there. But this had gone too far.

Lynda Chapman had always dreamed of being something bigger. She talked about it all the time. "When I get older, I'm going to be famous. Someone who changed the world. The worst thing in life is that after you die, you've made no impression on anything. You were _no one._ To think, taking a step in the snow and no footprints left behind… to throw a stone in a pond to see no ripple… It's like you don't matter. Well, I'm going to matter," she once said, while chatting with Lily in the common room.

But in order to achieve her goals, Lynda also tended to weave wild tales. When she started a story about how McGonagall had started a nudist colony, it spread like wildfire, and the result wasn't pretty when it reached ears of the staff. And this was just another one like it.

"Lynda…"

"It's true!" Lynda's eyes were wild, the blue in them electrified. "I saw it, I swear Lily…"

"Are you talking about the thing that happened in McGonagall's?" Henry Abbott had stopped by, carrying his books with a wilting flower on top. "I was there. That was probably the bloody weirdest thing I've ever seen." He shook his head. "I wonder what's happening up there in Dumbledore's office. I'm going up with a bunch of others from the class- want to come up and have a look?"

Lily shook her head numbly. Lynda was just about to agree when she saw the look on Lily's face. "Oh dear…" she murmured, then turned back to Henry. "I'm sorry. I think I'm going to stay with Lily, if that's all right…"

Henry nodded, and took the flower from his stack of books. "A beautiful tulip for a lovely lady," he said suavely, bowing. Lynda couldn't help but giggle as she received one. As Henry whisked off, galloping through the halls, Lynda turned back to Lily.

"I thought he liked me, he always did look at me a bit in Charms…" she giggled, smelling the purple flower.

But Lily's face was deathly white, her hands at her sides. For some reason, this was striking her horribly. Sirius, Remus, Peter and James… gone? The thought chilled her to the bone. They were all pig-headed, ignorant boys, spun up in their web of pompousness. Well, except Remus- he was the only sane one… and Peter of course, but she didn't like him _especially…_

Then why did she feel this way? Sirius was a crazy idiot, James was an arrogant prat, and Peter was completely helpless. Yes, Lily must have just been afraid that she was going to disappear into thin air too. She didn't miss any of them.

_Detention with all of them. Lily sighed angrily as she closed her eyes tight, wishing she was out of there. She had detention with the Marauders, for doing absolutely nothing._

_She turned to the side, watching Remus stare broodingly at the wall ahead. Peter was sitting in a chair, folding his pudgy arms together. Jams and Sirius were the only ones doing anything, as they laughed together secretively, giving glances out towards the others._

_Lily should have known to never get caught up with them. Four years and she still hadn't learned. She heard they were going to deface a statue… so what did she do? She had to go and prevent them from doing it. And when they were caught in the act, guess who McGonagall caught too._

_Brooding over her own misfortune, she didn't see James come over to her spot. The moment the shadow fell over the desk, she felt a scowl curl on her lips. Hatred came flaring up into her face. She usually loathed him for being pompous and ignorant; especially to Snape- couldn't he see that the poor boy was deprived of love? Why, when this boy was treated monstrously at home, did James have to continually pick on him? Lily felt her skin prickly at the injustice- but now he had to get her in trouble for doing nothing. _

_"What do you want?" she muttered, emerald green eyes cast downwards. She could see from the corner of her eye, Remus giving a look at James practically screaming, 'Why are you doing this? It's bad enough as it is…'_

_"We were just wondering if you would like to join us as we escape from this inhumane student prison," James grinned, flashing that famous smile._

_For a moment, something like happiness floated inside Lily. Then it crushed as she realized that this was James Potter talking. _

_"No."_

_True hurt surfaced in his eyes, but quickly dove back down. Sirius made an 'ouch!' sort of face as he winced. "Well, why not?" James asked, trying to salvage his reputation._

_"You want to know why?" The anger flew up inside of her, making her eyes flare. The built up anger of being stuck in this room, of the injustice of James, and simply the frustration of it all made her nearly scream with the vent up fury. She knew she looked frightening as James stepped back a bit and Sirius visibly moved backwards. Remus gave her a gaze that could only be called admiration. "Because you're a pompous, stuck-up, git. That's why. You go on, strutting like you own the school, and what claim do you have to it? All you do is pick on people who aren't loved and have a hard enough time getting around here. Do you know how that feels? I don't even know how… no one here knows how it feels!"_

_She saw Sirius give a look to Remus, who was staring at her attentively. His face showed nothing. "Yet, you do this to him, because it makes you feel good? It makes you feel happy when you can insult someone... someone who's one of my best friends-"_

_This made her choke for some reason, and as she looked all around her, they were staring at her in rapturous attention. "Why? Why do you do it?"_

_Everyone was silent for a moment, until James managed to speak up. "I didn't know, Lily… That Snape was so…I wouldn't have if I'd known…"_

_"Well you didn't bother to find out!" she declared. In her own mind, she knew that Snape could be a handful at times, but this was lost in her compassion for his situation._

_"How do you know Snape's so unloved?" Sirius asked, leaning against the wall. The speech seemed to have no effect on him whatsoever. "I mean, no matter what, he's still a twit."_

_Lily knew this was true, but felt she had to defend her friend. "I know because I live right next to him! We're neighors! I can't ignore his home's situations, can I? He's my friend, James, and he is a good person at heart, which is more than I can say for you!"_

_"A good person?" This came from Remus, surprisingly enough. "He's the one hanging around future Death Eaters, Lily. Although you don't know James, I, as a friend of his, find it quite insulting to consider his morals lower than Snape's. James has his fun, but I don't see him running around with murderers."_

_The words rang true to Lily, no matter how much she hated to admit it. It was something she'd been afraid of for a long, long time- Severus... what happened to you?- and at once she gave up. It was that sudden frustration that suddenly vented out of her, leaving the girl exhausted._

_"You know what, let's get out of here." The words that sprang from her mouth shocked her a bit._

_James looked taken aback also, but turned towards Sirius. "I… guess we could manage that, right, Padfoot?" _

_Sirius nodded and grinned, showing his white teeth. "We certainly can, Prongs."'_

_Soon Sirius was picking the lock of the door, ("Special trick I learned from my dear cousin's husband," he confided,) and Lily was standing behind him, watching as his hand skillfully wiggled the pick._

_Remus appeared by her side, staring ahead and not looking her in the eye. "You did a good thing back there. James was getting out of hand."_

_Lily shot him a warm smile. At least someone was listening to her rant- someone knew and could recognize what James was doing wrong. Someone who felt the injustice too. "You would have done the same thing, eventually," she replied._

_At that moment, Remus returned her smile, but his had a twinge of sadness. "No. I wouldn't have," he said softly._

_Lily did not know how to respond to this, and as the door swung open, she was a bit grateful for its opening. _

_As she sneaked out of the room, tension filled her. No, not tension… it was a feeling she had never experienced before, one that made her feel excited and nervous and extremely naughty all at the same time._

_Exhilaration at a minor, she thought. Then, it hit her. It was that lovely feeling of doing something bad._

_She looked around, barely able to suppress a giggle rising from her mouth. This was exciting! Would they be seen, would they get in trouble? The questions kept her on her toes as she edged with the Marauders towards the castle doors._

_A noise stopped them in their tracks as a soft hiss was heard. Lily felt all the built up excitement quickly deflate. Mrs. Norris's yellow eyes gazed at them all, her tail swishing ominously. _

_Sirius's eyes flickered from the cat to James. Lily had no idea what they were doing, but something had passed in that gaze, because the next moment, Sirius had let out a large growl, baring his teeth at the cat. The pose was so comical that Lily couldn't help but laugh as Mrs. Norris's hair went on end and she slunk away._

_The next hour went by in a blur. They had gone outside and relaxed by the lake; Sirius playfully splashed her with water and attempted to get the squid to come out of the water for them. Needless to say, this was to no avail._

_The only moment solid enough for Lily to remember clearly was when James sat down beside her, chewing on a blade of grass as he grinned. "Hey."_

_She smiled back, letting the sunlight bask on her face. "Hi."_

_"I just wanted to tell you that… I didn't mean to pick on Snape like that… I didn't know. I mean, he's a git at times, but…" _

_"It's all right." For the first time, she'd noticed how nice his eyes were._

_"Yeah… just wanted to tell you that. Oi, Padfoot! Watch out for that tentacle…"_

_The next few minutes were spent trying to untangle Sirius from the giant squid's grasp, and Lily realized she'd never had that much fun in her entire life._

_Laughing as she slipped backwards, stumbling a bit as she brushed a red tendril of hair from her face, she noticed Remus looking at her oddly. She stared at him back and his cheeks flamed._

_"Get the bloody thing off me!" Sirius cried as James managed to shoot a spark of blue fire into Sirius's hair._

Okay… so they might hold a place in her heart.

"What happened to them?" Lily whispered urgently. Lynda, lost in her own daydreams with Henry, gently swayed back and forth. Lily couldn't stand it. "What happened?" she cried, grabbing Lynda's shoulders.

Her friend appeared startled, and then her blue eyes filled with tears. "I'm sorry, Lily…"

"No. You don't have to be sorry- just _tell me what happened._"

"It…it was strange…" Lynda seemed almost afraid of her, but Lily didn't care. She had to know what happened to them. A strange kinship had worked between the five of them, something that kept them together. She had to know.

"They… they disappeared in a white light… it was… so strange… then… then they came back."

Lily felt panic overtake her. "What happened? Lynda, what happened?" The terror streamed out of her voice, taking her by surprise.

"They were older when they came back. I mean, like early thirties, it was so strange… I don't know, Lily, why are you pressing me for this? It doesn't matter; it was some fake cop… Since when did you care so much about them?"

But it was too late. Lily had already sprinted off, trying to find them. Even if it was some sort of joke, she had to find them.

She had to.

And for some reason, just then, the name for the relationship they shared hit her. It was deeper than friendship, but not love. It was as if their paths had crossed for the better or worse.

An eternal bond.


	4. Chapter 4

James told Dumbledore the whole story— or what he knew of it, anyway. Several times, he saw Remus raise his eyebrows and Sirius let out low, growling noises. Peter looked straight ahead, barely moving a muscle. James had worked his way up until the Fidelius Charm when Dumbledore gave a curt nod, ending their conversation.

"Well."

The room was silent as Dumbledore's utterance echoed around the round room. "So who betrayed James?" he asked.

All at once, the four stood up, each pointing a wand at each other. Peter's hand trembled as he moved his wand between Remus and Sirius, the quivering ensuring that Dumbledore would not be able to tell who exactly he was accusing. _Indecisive… always indecisive…and so, so weak…_

His tremulous hand suddenly became much shakier.

"PETER!" The voice erupted out of nowhere. Everyone swiveled on the spot, unable to believe such a horrible, powerful scream had come from the skeleton before them. All Sirius did was grin, his eyes glinting with unsuppressed glee. "I've got you. I've got you right where I want you. And I don't care if Dumbledore sees, I don't care if anybody sees. Because I can do what I've wanted to do for the past twelve years." A manic, fearsome look manifested itself on his face, rendering him more a beast than a man.

Peter's hand was not the only one shaking anymore.

"Sirius?" Even Dumbledore, the calmest of all men, seemed a little disquieted. "Please, refrain yourself—"

"No, God damn it, I won't!" Sirius screamed. "I won't let this murderer continue to live!" He lunged forward, and James and Remus both jumped, both attempting to get to Peter's side before Sirius could do anything.

Peter found the ragged, callused hand of Sirius at his throat, his wand pressed fiercely against his jaw. Sooner still was the dirty, matted hair in his face, suffocating him with the stench of the prison he had put Sirius in.

"I'm surprised you're still even alive, you know," Sirius whispered, his voice almost physically paining Peter. "After betraying your friends, and all. I would have thought you'd at least the decency for suicide."

Peter closed his eyes tightly.

"The guilt," Sirius hissed, and each syllable that fell from his lips formed daggers. Peter knew he was right. He wanted to shout that he knew that, he knew he should have killed himself, hadn't he thought of it before? _Just don't talk anymore, Sirius, just stop talking to me about this, I know, I know, I don't need this…_

"Let it go, Sirius," James said quietly and calmly, his hazel eyes flickering from Peter to his best friend. "Just let him go." The firm stance of his body and the set of his jaw led Sirius to perhaps sense a threat behind his words, and he slowly released Peter.

Dumbledore watched this without expression, although when he turned his head to watch the group return to their seats, Sirius could have sworn he saw a slight grimace on his lips. But in a moment, he was Dumbledore again, hands folded placidly in front of him.

"Well, this obviously isn't a good time for you all," he began lightly. "Perhaps you'd like to wait a while so as to… simmer down?" His gaze quickly flicked to Sirius. Before Sirius could respond with a retort, Dumbledore's clear watch had already moved on.

"For the time, we can offer you all a few extra rooms in the castle available to visitors. This is, of course, if you wish it…"

"Yes," James said bluntly, and Remus nodded his assent much to the Potter's disconcertment, as if the fact that he and the werewolf agreed was something indescribably heinous.

Peter was still somewhat stricken from his many attacks that day, and slowly nodded. This was the worst possible situation he'd ever been in. Worse than the murder of James? he thought suddenly. He remembered Sirius's anger earlier that day, such sorrow and desperateness in his violence. Worse, he remembered James's innocent defense of him. Him! Him, who had betrayed James, who killed his wife as well. It sent shivers up his spine, and guilt suddenly overwhelmed him. Yes, this was worse.

"Sirius?"

Sirius looked up, his eyes hidden within the shadows of his long, uncombed hair. The bags under his eyes seemed darker as he rubbed the bridge of his nose in an attempt to concentrate. "I… I…" He looked hopelessly around. It was clear he had no wish to stay here, but at the moment, he realized he had no other choice. "I suppose I must," he said quietly, tiredly leaning his thin face on his hand.

Everyone was silent as Sirius sat, Dumbledore gazing at Black with an intent expression. Eventually, he stood up and the group followed suit.

"Second floor, down the—"

"We know," James said, interrupting Dumbledore's directions. The old man did not appear unsettled as he simply nodded in understanding.

"I'll not keep you any longer. Please, take a rest. The house elves will bring you some food shortly. Tomorrow, I'll call on you as a continuation of sorts on this meeting. Feel free to roam about the grounds. I'm sure you all have a lot to talk about."

"A bit too much, I'm afraid," Remus said lightly.

Dumbledore gave a small smile, but it did not reach his eyes as the Marauders left, all merely shadows of who they were when they were younger.

-

Lily raced down the hallways, desperately looking for any sight of the Marauders. The fear she felt she had never experienced before. They were nothing to her, she assured herself. They were nothing… oh, but they were!

"Lily! Lily!" From behind the crowds she heard Lynda shrieking, and she also heard several people grunt as they were pushed aside. Yes, it was Lynda all right.

"I've been trying to catch up with you for the past… few minutes…" Lynda, her fair hair flying all about her head, leaned forward, breathing heavily. "Why'd you leave like that?"

Lily shrugged in a casual manner, but inside her mind, everything was a crazed whirlwind of thoughts. "I just… I felt like I had to find them. I feel like I have to find them," she corrected herself. Lynda turned her face to Lily from her hunched position and stared at her like she was insane.

"Them?" she asked incredulously. "Who cares about them? Since when have you been interested in _them_?"

"They have names you know," Lily said, slightly irritated.

"Whatever! They're just a whole bunch of stuck-up popular idiots! It's probably some prank Sirius pulled together." Lynda shrugged and, having resumed her regular breathing, stood upright once again. "It's stupid."

"I don't know… this sounds really, really different—"

Just then, a huge group of students walked by, consisting of several sixth-year boys who evidently thought they were the height of cool. One, who appeared younger than the others, looked rather excited, his black hair completely disarrayed and his face a pleasing red.

"'Ey, did you 'ear about that fing during McGonagall's class?" he began breathlessly.

"Of course," said another, hands put coolly into his pockets.

"I sawr 'em all, I did!" he cried, no longer able to contain his information. All the boys turned around, this tale evidently worth listening to.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean," the boy articulated, taking precise pains to slow himself down, "that I sawr 'em all walking down the 'allway, goin' to the guestrooms over there." He pointed to the staircase leading to the second floor. "I wanted to say 'ello, but…"

All the other boys were too busy talking about the news to listen to the rest of his story. But Lily had heard enough and quickly headed to the staircase.

"Lily, we're going to be sooo late," Lynda moaned, but obediently followed her friend to the rooms. Apparently, the young boy had already told quite a few people, as the hallway leading to the spare rooms were absolutely packed. Students gossiped and pointed, but none had yet dared knock on one of the doors.

Lynda, seeing another friend in the midst of the crowd, began to wave happily, but in the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of red get closer to the rooms. Oh God.

She tore after her friend, grabbing her right before Lily was able to turn the knob. "What are you doing?" she hissed angrily and started to pull her away, but Lily resisted.

"I need to talk to them! I need to find out if this is true or not!"

"It's not; it's stupid, I already told you! Now let's go!" Lynda pulled once again, but this time, Lily ripped her robe right out of her hands.

"No." The steeliness in her green eyes quickly and confidently cowed Lynda. "I need to know what's going on. You're Miss Outgoing, shouldn't you be right with me?"

Lynda rolled her pale blue eyes and quickly grabbed Lily's elbow, trying to usher her along. "Just because I like to talk doesn't mean I want to barge in on some psycho freak's door!" she explained impatiently, as if it were the most logical thing in the world.

Lily turned and crossed her arms across her chest. "I thought you said the whole thing was a fake. That there was absolutely no one there."

A bright red blush crept onto Lynda's cheeks. "I never said that," she muttered defensively. "I just said the Marauders weren't here, that's all."

"Well, if they're not, there's no harm in just knocking, is there?"

Lynda opened her mouth to respond, but nothing came out. For several seconds, she mentally wrestled herself with the issue, biting her lip and making ridiculously comical faces as Lily watched on in amusement. Finally, Lynda said curtly, "All right. Just one little knock, okay?"

"Okay." It was all she needed to hear. There were five different rooms, but she figured that she had a pretty good chance of reaching one with a Marauder inside. She already knew which door she was going to choose.

With Lynda covering her hands over her eyes, Lily marched smartly up to the room and gave a quick rap on the wood. The whole crowd stared, their mouths hanging open at her audacity. Several began to creep closer, craning their heads to see what would happen. Or what exactly would open the door.

_Who would answer the door_? The question was on the minds of everyone, most of all Lily's. Outwardly, her back was straight, eyes fiery and jaw set firmly in an expression of utmost pugnacity. But images of the Marauders raided her, images of what they would look like now. Sirius with a funny goatee, Peter having grown quite a large beer belly, Remus with his hair turned a distinguished grey, and James…

The whispers started getting louder and louder, but the door remained steadfastly closed. Lynda dared to peek out behind her fingers, and let out a sigh of relief. That was awfully close.

James. She couldn't picture him. Not in the least. Wouldn't he always be the same? That loathsome, childish grin, his eyes full of longing to be liked, for people to laugh at him, a sort of earnest innocence…

And at that moment, the door opened.


	5. Chapter 5

"Hello."

He had a pleasant voice, light and soft. Tall, too, but lean. His frame took up less than half of the doorway, and she could tell that even beneath his small, patched robes, there was he still was not quite filling them out. This couldn't be any of them.

"I'm sorry." She ducked her head, as if trying to apologize, and began to back away. Everyone simply stared.

"Wait—"

The man took a few halting steps forward, then took a quick step backward, unsure of whether or not this was the correct. She waited, frozen in her retreating position.

"I just… I… Lily. You're Lily. Right?"

"Yes," she said, but nearly as strong and sure as she would have liked.

He paused, looking almost tired from this effort as he leaned against the doorframe, his thin arm gently propped above his head.

"Lily…" A slight smile appeared on his face, but the overall impression was not joy. It was ironic, weary defeat. She wondered what it was that inspired this portrait, this man slumped against a foreign room, who had watched the world fell apart and was seeing it tremble and attempt to fall back together again. It was a picture of failure and of misery and of reminiscence.

The ironic, small pull of the lips came again. "Lily."

"Yes."

He detached himself from his aid, righting himself once more.

"Well. Won't you step in?"

He gestured finely with the manners of a gentleman. The irony and the downright bitterness did not suit him well, she decided.

"I most certainly will."

And she did.

"Nice place." She nodded at the guest room, and he gave an appreciating laugh.

"As you can see, I've done my best to make it my own."

The room was completely empty, bare of any furnishings apart from a bed and a mirror. On second look, Lily noticed small cupboard and kitchenette tucked neatly into a corner. The walls were bland beige, and even the headboard was a nondescript design. Really, couldn't Dumbledore make something a little better than this?

"So." He sat down on the bed, hardly making an indent on the covers.

"Just wanted to see what was going on. See what all the fuss was about." Lily immediately felt defensive in front of this man who had nothing but a soft smile on his haggard face. God, she was a horrible person.

"I completely understand."

"So…" She sat down on the other side of the bed, at first attempting to stray away from his gaze but eventually giving in. "Is it true?"

"What?"

"The rumors."

"Well, if it's the one about the Giant Squid having a wife and two children, then it most certainly is." He grinned, and although the creases around his eyes were accentuated, he suddenly grew years younger.

"You know what I mean!" And then, suddenly, there he was.

Remus Lupin, sitting in front of her, finally grown into his gawky height, completely grey-haired and still smiling and laughing like that sweet teenage boy. That Remus Lupin.

"No," she whispered.

"What?" He smiled again, unaware of what on earth she was talking about.

"Remus?"

His smile faded, and he was once again the old man who had answered the door. Everything in his entire body collapsed, from his shoulders to his spine, and his briefly animated eyes now turned a dull grey.

"How quickly you guess…" He gave a mirthless chuckle.

Lily paused for a moment, confused. She usually read people in the blink of an eye, found their motives and their insecurities in this cryptic language. But Remus—if she could even call him Remus— was different.

"I'm not sure I understand," she said slowly, trying to glean anything from his face. But all signs of bitterness were washed away with an erudite aura, leaving his statement lost in the past.

"Just an old man's recollections. Now I suppose you'd like something to drink then… would tea suffice?"

"Tea is fine."

She watched as he made himself busy, collecting cups and spoons for them. Such niceties suddenly threw her back to her own home, back to her mother's gentle stirring and the quiet clink of cup against plate. And for a brief moment, she remembered how much she missed it.

"Here."

Remus handed her a steaming cup with a steady hand, and she accepted it gratefully.

"So. Were you looking for James?"

When her head shot up, his gaze had not wavered from her face.

"I'm sorry. Did I…?"

"No. It's fine." She even stumbled through a polite laugh. "I wasn't, though. You know. Searching for him. I just wanted to see if… if the rumors were true." And she couldn't continue looking him in the eyes. Of course he knew. Out of anyone, anyone in the world, it would be Remus who would know she had wanted James.

"Ahh, yes. I see." Even the tone of his voice indicated his knowledge, that clipped, disappointed sound of someone who knew they'd been lied to.

His spoon swayed through the brown liquid, and he took a quiet sip.

"So have the rumors been disappointing?" He shook his head, immediately regretting the choice of words. "No… no, not disappointing…"

He looked up at her, fear in his eyes.

"No. So far, all the students have been talking about how all of you are old. So accurate is a more correct description, I suppose." She smiled, attempting to get a laugh from him.

The resulting laugh seemed more strained than anything else. "Old, eh?" He laughed again, quietly this time, and looked down at his tea. He was focused intently, staring into the dark liquid as if trying to make out his reflection. He finally gave up and set the saucer down on the cold countertop.

"So."

Well. After all this, she didn't know what to say. What had she been expecting? Something, obviously. An answer? Hmm. An answer to what would be the next appropriate question, and she didn't have an answer to that one, either. So she just sat on the bed, waiting for something that wasn't planning on coming.

Remus apparently thought the same, because he quickly got up to clean up his things. It was a futile attempt to make things less awkward, but Lily didn't mind. She'd rather he take up the burden than she.

He stood, wiping off his thin hands with a towel, and when Lily finally had the courage to look him in the face, there was a concerned, almost fatherly expression on his tired visage.

"Lily, are you all right?"

"Yeah, I…"

Then out of her erupted a stampede of words, flailing and falling as she desperately scrambled to put them into understandable order, nonetheless _stop_ them.

"Look, I don't know what to do, my entire life I've absolutely hated James, and now I suddenly want to start searching for him on my own free will, and I _hate_ the way he smirks at me and calls me Evans and I just want to smack him and I say I hate it, but then sometimes I think I don't, that it's more habit because I've kept saying these things over and over but I don't know if that's really the way I feel anymore, but he's awful, and he's mean and I don't want to like him but I'm so afraid I do."

She knew what she had said was not eloquent in the least. Normally, she would have felt slightly ashamed of having been so straightforward, but when Remus's bright grey eyes bored into hers, almost _speaking_ his understanding, she suddenly didn't. As a matter of fact, she was glad she'd done what she did.

And Remus almost gave a little smile.

"Would you like to take a walk?" he asked.

"Yes, I think I'd like that."


End file.
